“So what do you think is so important about the six month marker then?”

“I’m not totally sure. But I can only liken it to when you start a new job. The first week you are there everything is new and exciting, but quite quickly that turns into a feeling of realising that you’re the new boy and that you have a lot to learn and a long way to go before you settle into your new surroundings and you can say that things start to feel normal. I think I put into my mind at somepoint that this would be the same, and so whether it’s real or just some psychological effect I don’t know, but hitting the six month mark is definetely a milestone in some form or other”

“Did some specifically happen at the six month mark to you though, or do you think it was always going to take that amount of time for things to fall into place?”

“I would say both. About a week before the six months up, there was an evening in where suddenly I felt as if a lot of things had gelled and clicked into place … and there was nothing specific about it. It just felt like it. Now whether something has happened, or whether it was just attributal to the amount of time that I’d spent here -it’s hard to say. But I’ll remember the moment, even though really it was nothing special – just an evening in doing nothing special – although that could’ve been what it was – doing nothing special that was special. Does that make sense?”

“What would you say to someone – a friend or a stranger – who told you they were thinking about emigrating then?”

“Don’t do it! [laughs] Well ok – that’s not entirely true, but you should sit down and have a proper think about what it is you’re going to do, and you should be able to take a frank look at yourself and decide whether (if you know yourself well enough) you think you’re going to be able to ride the rough times with the smooth ones – and be warned that there are plenty of rough times mixed in there.

Actually, two people from where I used to work got in touch with me asked about doing a similar thing – and I gave them some real life experience of what I’d learnt! It was at that point that I think I realised that I could sit back at some point in the future and look back at this period with very fond memories, and also get out of the fact that I’d become a better or stronger person because of it”

“Do you worry about what other people might be saying behind your back then?”

“Oh my goodness – all the time, yes! Or some of the comments I get on my blog from people that think it’s very easy to comment, without realising how it actually feels. Some days I can take it, others I can’t. Overall it’s ok though”

“Would you say that those six months have gone slowly or very quickly?”.

“Wow. Err. Great question. Because sometimes I look back and think about all the the things that have gone on and can’t believe I’ve packed so much thing into such a short space of time. Then there are other days, when things feel like they’re dragging, and you’re waiting for certain things which you know are going to happen, but they just seem like an age coming”.

“What have been some of the highs during these six months then?”

“Oh crikey. Well there have been lots. Lots of stuff I’ve done on my own, stuff done as a couple. And of course there have been lotsofnicepeoplethatI’vemet as well which have really helped. It turns out that America isn’t just a nation of gun-touting fat arsed red necks after all [laughs]. And of course, I’m not forgetting the friendsbackhome that have turned out to be real gems too. Even if it’s only a virtualrelationship“

“And what about some of the lows?”

“What! I can’t tell you that … that’s very personal.”

“That’s ok .. anything said in the confines of these four walls stay here, no one else gets to know about them … “

“Unless I go home and blog about it that is! [laughs]” …

“If you did that, do you not think other might not just see it as an act of deliberate melodrama?”.

“Possibly, but then it’d be easy for someone to accuse me of that who hasn’t put themselves in a similar situation as me. I’ve been following the progress of otherslikeme in recent times, and I feel that I’m still quite justified in waffling about some of the things that I say, and what I may or may not blog about. I can’t help but feel whatever I feel, can I? That’s just me”

“Right, well I’m afraid that we’ve run out of time for today, so we’ll have to wrap it up there …

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I know what it’s like for those first 6 months–you really feel like you do soooo much. The next 6 months, the next years, just fly by without so much really happening. Or, at least you feel like it doesn’t happen… You’ve gotten through the initial elation and the initial culture shock, and settled into normal life.

The weirdest part is when you go back home (either to visit or for good) and you realize that you have to adjust yourself again. Sometimes it starts to feel like nowhere’s really ‘home’.

Why does this ‘interview’ look like something out of ‘Hello’/OK magazine? (not that I would admit to reading them of course). Have you contacted them for a photo session and 6 page spread? Tube man spreads his wings type stuff. BTW emigrates has only 1 m.